To Glory We Go
by Edward George
Summary: Cliff Richards wanted nothing more then to go to Mexico to retire and play like Jimmy Buffet, bury his feet in the sand and let a bevy of beautiful senioritis wait on him. However fate had other plans for him when he crossed the border, a road block, mad towns people and dissent waiting for him. Cliff and six friends first had to teach the towns people of the small Mexican town of


**To Glory We Go**

Cliff Richards wanted nothing more then to go to Mexico to retire and play like Jimmy Buffet, bury his feet in the sand and let a bevy of beautiful senioritis wait on him.

However fate had other plans for him when he crossed the border, a road block, mad towns people and dissent waiting for him.

Cliff and six friends first had to teach the towns people of the small Mexican town of Atulian to defend themselves and the town from the deadly Cartel which was logging all the trees from around the town. Little did the Cartel realize who they were fighting.

1.

The Trip South

Red dust rose up behind the American made Chevrolet Scottsdale pickup as it sped south on the road from Mexico City for parts unknown. Despite warnings from his friends, Cliff Richards went to Mexico anyway. He made it across the border at Lerado, Texas with no problem. Cliff followed the paved road Mexico Highway 80 to Guadalajara where he stopped for gas and stayed overnight.

Early the next morning Cliff continued on toward his goal, the Pacific coast. The pickup truck windows were down with Hank Williams Jr. blaring from the stereo speakers of the truck as Cliff drove south. The asphalt ran out and turned to a dust track then at an intersection where he picked up a secondary road. The worn rusted metal sign at the intersection indicated the next town was Atulian. The road ran west toward a wide lonely spot in the road and the town of Atulian. He stopped long enough to check the map – forget GPS's out here, they're little better than useless. He figured he made it this far without one.

Besides, twenty years in the US Army Special Forces taught him how to read a map and

compass. Besides, what more did he need on the road?

Cliff found the town on the map. "Well, what do you know it's on the map." Tracing a finger west to the coast he located a likely coastal town where he would pitch his umbrella and do nothing but let the beautiful senioritis wait on him. Setting the map aside he continued in to Atulian,

Cliff was one of those Americans who thought Mexico was mostly desert: a product of Hollywood movies and Grade B and less western movies. The area was lush green land and forest but, he noticed less then quality cutting.

"Boy I haven't seen anything this screwed up since Dad tried thinning the wood lot himself."

Cliff slowed looking the area over. It was obvious the timber had not been professionally cut by whoever the loggers were. Burned trees, stumps, weeds and local grass were growing up where trees once stood. He rounded a bend in the road and slowed almost to a stop. A burned out American style school bus and two burned out pickup trucks still set where they had been ambushed.

A little further on he saw the barrier and rifle and gun totting men and a couple women.

"Oh great now what?" he said as he stopped. He didn't dare make sudden moves to back up.

Three men with assault rifles covered Cliff while a fourth gestured for him to get out

of the truck.

"Undala! Undala!" the man shouted gesturing with the rifle.

"I'm moving, I'm moving," Cliff shouted back in his best Spanish. He got out with

hands raised and moved away from the truck.

The others watched as the young man walked out to Cliff to look first at the Texas state license plates then at Cliff.

"ID?" he asked in broken English.

"My ID is my wallet in my back pocket."

Cliff was surrounded by the vigilante squad as the guy took the wallet from his back pocket and began rummaging through it.

"You Americano, gringo. Where you going, eh?"

"Was until now going to Manzanillo on the coast."

He stuffed the wallet back in Cliff's back pocket. "And what did you plan to do in Manzanillo?"

"Retire." Cliff told him. "At least I was going to retire until now."

"Hey, Nana, what do we do with him?" the man shouted.

Cliff thought it was a joke until a white hair woman carrying an 7.62 millimeter assault rifle appeared at the barrier. He had to look twice when he saw the old Grandma and thought: _Somebody's gray haired old grandma totting an assault rifle. What's next, an RPG?_

She looked at Cliff a minute. "Bring him here."

Cliff walked ahead of the other to the barrier. He stopped, the woman looked him over again. "Do you know where you are, gringo?"

"Atulian."

"This is a free town. You not with the Americano polica?"

"Ask him, he went through my bill fold."

She allowed the hint of a smile on her aged, time weary face. She spent many sleepless nights at the bonfire barricade that became her headquarters.

"Let him come in." She gestured Cliff through the gap in the barrier with the rifle.

Cliff walked through the narrow passage in the barrier to a tent which was her office, home, and kitchen.

"Sit. Name's Alejandra Baso y' Arenas."

Cliff introduced himself then looked around and seeing only a wooden box, pulled

it up to sit down in front of a small table. He took a minute to look through the tent flaps. It was obvious the town and the people had seen a few years of hard times. Almost everyone of adult or teenager carried a rifle or pistol.

Looking back at the woman he said: "I take it you guys are running the show around here now."

"For the past year." She paused then said: "We ran those worthless cops out of here and couple days later the cartel attempted to send armed men against us. We were waiting for them."

"Ambush."

She nodded. "We had the guns from the police station when we ran them out of town. Now we have the syndicate's guns too."

Cliff hooked his thumb back in the direction of the burned out trucks and bus. "And that's the end result of what you did?"

Alejandra nodded her sage head. "They attempted to take us one night afterward but we were waiting for them too."

Cliff felt a pair of eyes watching him. He casually looked around at the town and the people watching him but the other set of eyes felt closer. His years in the Special Forces had not diminished as he saw dozens of loop holes in the town barriers. This was a throw back to his days in Vietnam and nearly smacked of the days when European towns were surrounded by massive stone or timber walls.

"So what are you doing besides having people patrol the area?"

Alejandra regarded Cliff a moment. "Do you see something?"

"Yes, ma'am, a dozen loop holes in your network of barriers that need plugging."

"And you know this?"

"Yes." He nodded. "US Army Special Forces."

Alejandra was not impressed. Cliff didn't think so. Alejandra gave this a moment's thought. She as did the others of Atulian learned not to take any outsiders at face value.

Shoring up his resolve he stood pointing tothe open area across from them, "Okay, take that area over across the road before you get in to the town itself. Even with what you have for barriers I could still get in here and do some damage."

Alejandra looked the area over again. "Then what do you suggest?"

"Let's go. I'll show you." Cliff led her across the road to an open area between two barriers. "What do you have to stop anyone from slipping between these barriers?"

"The fires," she said, "we light them when it becomes dark. No one can get through then."

"I can."

"Even with people watching?" She seemed unsure.

Cliff just nodded. "Yes. I'll do it tonight but you won't know the time when or where I'll do it."

Several of the town's people following were watching and listening carefully to what Cliff said. He noticed the girl he had seen earlier when he arrived. He gestured for Alejandra to follow to the next area. From the corner of his eye he saw the group follow him.

"Good. Maybe they'll learn something they didn't know this morning."

Cliff stopped near a cluster of buildings and the charred remains of a bon fire. "Take it that I am a spy. I'm studying your defenses and see these loop holes in the area. I check out two or three – alternates." He points to the remains of the bon fire. "The fires are a good idea but…" he drew out the 'but' part. "It also makes a good neon sign pointing out where the guards are sitting and to avoid them. One, a nice target; two, a nice place to avoid. Also the bright light ruins your night vision."

Alejandra looked around then asked, "How do you know there are not guards elsewhere then by the fire?"

"Human habit. Congregate by the heat and light. Also, so the saying goes – safety in numbers."

He noticed a side street between two buildings. "If you don't have anyone here, chances are that open area is a nice avenue of approach for someone wanting in to the village. Do whatever and out."

Alejandra had seen and heard enough. Motioned with her head she said, "Let's go back to the tent."

They walked up to the street, a dirt track that bisected the town. Cliff chanced a look over his shoulder to see the others, including the girl he'd seen twice now.

_Suspicious lot, but then again, they have a lot to be suspicious about._

"So," Alejandra began setting the rifle aside, "you think this town needs better protection?"

"Without turning the town in to a fortress, yes."

Cliff felt those eyes on his back again. Someone was watching his every move and close enough to hear what he was saying.

"I have think about this."

Cliff stood to leave. She said pointing a finger at him: "You wait in town at cantina.

I will call for you."

He had the idea arguing with her was fruitless. "Will do."

Alejandra waited until Cliff Richards was away from the tent then snapped her fingers. Several men and women moved into the tent as Cliff walked out.

The girl turned to follow Richards across town to the cantina. She stopped in the road to watch him walk through the swinging doors into the cantina then followed him inside.

Cliff walked in looking around a moment. He took the aviator sun glasses off hooking them in his T-shirt color. His eyes took in the cool dark interior with Mexican-Indian murals painted on the walls, a few empty tables and the small bar with a few bottles behind it. He wasn't sure at the moment what he expected of the cantina, maybe a beautiful dark haired senorita and a mariachi band to appear. He mused to himself: _I suppose I've been watching too many of those stupid Hollywood movies with a takeoff on Mexico._

He stopped at the bar to look around again when the doors swung open and closed.

Cliff turned his eyes instantly swept over the young dark haired girl carrying an M16A3 assault rifle.

"Don't worry, I know how to use this gun," she said walking across the room toward him.

"Rifle, dear. That's not a gun. Good thing I'm not still on active duty, you'd be doing fifty pushups about now."

"You're serious."

"As a heart attack."

He turned back to the bar as the bar keeper stepped around from the back of the bar area carrying a rifle also. "Gotta admit this town is pretty well armed." He looked up at an array of bottles behind the bar. "Got a Jack and coke?"

The bar keeper reached back for the bottle of Jack Daniels and under the bar for a can of Coke Cola. He set both on the bar with a glass. "Ten pesos."

Cliff knew it was a rip off price but then this was a profiteer's game now. He pulled the thick wad of Mexican money from a pocket, counted the bills laying them in front of the bar keep. The other swept the money from the bar as Cliff opened the can of soda, poured a bit in the glass then the Jack filled the rest of the glass. No ice.

"What are you going to have, honey?" he asked the girl.

"Same thing." She stood with her back to the bar watching Cliff, the rifle depended from her right shoulder by the assault sling.

Cliff indicated a glass for the girl and shoved the Jack and coke toward her. "Help yourself."

She poured the Jack Daniels then the Coke. She picked up the glass taking the drink down in a gulp. "Thanks."

"Did you even taste it?" He drank the rest of his in a gulp.

The girl smiled coyly at Cliff as she poured herself another drink of the whiskey.

"Si. I've been drinking with the men since I was sixteen."

He picked up the can of soda and bottle and walked to a table sitting with his back to the wall. The girl crossed the room with her empty glass sitting beside Cliff. She poured straight whiskey into her glass sipping it as she stared at the door.

"What do you think you're going to do?"

"About what?"

"The town, helping the people."

"Don't know yet. Depends on the old lady."

"My Grandmother."

"Oh." Cliff poured Coke and whiskey into his glass and drank it straight down. "I was hoping to be into Manzanillo in another hour – but of course you know what happened to that idea?"

"You ended up here." She drank the rest of the whiskey then set the glass down. "Nana is a good leader. She threw the cartel people and police out of the town last month, but she can't do this all alone."

"Who's Nana?"

"Grandma." The girl stared at Cliff hoping he'd volunteer. She looked away. "The cartel loggers would come and cut our trees down, they'd do whatever they wanted – you name it. We endured them for nearly five years. We begged the police to do something but they ignored us. Finally one day Nana had enough – a lot of people had enough. Nana and several other people killed the first group in the forest. When they failed to go back to Mexico City the next group showed up but they met the same fate."

She poured herself another glass of whiskey. "You can pretty much figure out the rest."

"Incidentally, what's your name if we have to work together?"

"Adela – Adela Torres."

"And on top of that your Nana and the people threw the police out of town."

Adela nodded her head. "Si. Now my people need better leadership."

"Let me ask you this: You sound better than you seem. Have you been to college or a school of higher education?"

"University. When they threw the police out of town Nana had me come home to help her."

Parents?"

She seemed reluctant to answer. "Papa left – so I am told when I was born and Mama died a few years ago."

Cliff poured himself another drink then poured Adela another drink. The doors swung open and a man, one of the town's people stood just inside the swinging doors. "Yoa, amigo, Alejandra wants you now. We make decision."

Drinking the rest of the whiskey, Cliff followed the other back to the tent where Alejandra was holding court with some of the town's people. Adela walked beside Cliff as if she were one of his guards. Cliff walked into the crowded tent.

Alejandra waved her hands to the others to make room for Cliff. Adela stood back watching Cliff as he approached Alejandra.

"Mr. Cliff, you know a lot about our defenses of the village in a short time." Alejandra studied Cliff's features. "You said you were you in the Americano army?"

"Special Forces."

"It shows. We need a man of your talents." Alejandra glanced off to her right nodding. Cliff wasn't able to see who Alejandra was agreeing with. "The cartel will send enforcement men to finish what the others were supposed to do. They want the rest of our trees. We tell them no. We need help to be ready for them."

Cliff realized he had to think and think fast on this information that Alejandra was telling him. "You need more people than just me to help you get ready for an eventual attack on the village."

"What do you suggest then?"

Cliff drew in a breath looking toward the top of the tent. "As I said it will take more than me to do this job. I'll need people with more skills in just weapons."

"I take it you know where to get them? And they are reliable?"

"Yes."

"How many days will it take you to get them?"

"Good question." He looked at the top of the tent again trying to visualize the trip back to Texas and Killeen. "Possibly two weeks. One week there and one week back."

A man spoke up. "We have no choice, Senorita Alejandra."

Alejandra was thinking now. "Very well. All we can do is trust your judgment."

Cliff nodded his head turning he noticed Adela was gone.

Chapter 2

Killeen, Texas

Four days later after hard driving north on I-35 then west on Texas Route 190 into Killeen and past Fort Hood, Cliff found what he was looking for – Bobby's Bar and Grill off State 190. A few pickups and a couple cars were parked in front of the Bar and Grill at early noon.

"Well, I'll be darned, they're here. I don't believe it." Cliff turned into the parking area looking over the trucks and a couple cars parked in the area. He walked into the bar pausing inside the glass door taking his sun glasses off letting the cool air of the air conditioning dry his sweat. He immediately spotted the group. Except for the group of five men, a lone woman sat at the end of the bar with a glass of soda, smoking a cigarette.

"Well look what the dog dragged in," Jimmy Page laughed.

Cliff lifted his hand to the group. "Hi."

"Where the hell have you been?" Frank Miller asked as Cliff crossed the room to grab a chair from a nearby table to join the group.

The lady sitting at the bar, the bar maid and Frank's sometimes girlfriend walked over to the group. "What'll ya have, Cliff, yer usual?"

"Yeah. Thanks. Down in Old Mexico."

"Mexico?" Marc Howard said. "That's a helluva place to be right now. It's almost safer to be in Iraq right now."

Jenny set the glass in front of Cliff and said, "I heard that. What are you nuts? What's down there anyway besides criminals and pot?"

"Well," Cliff began. "I was going to do a Jimmy Buffet number and just chill out on a secluded beach somewhere until I got way-laid in this hayseed burg called Atulian on the

Pacific side of Mexico."

Cliff explained why he came back to Killeen. "So what do you think? You guys would be right for the job."

He handed his glass to Jenny for a refill. She said as she walked away, "Yer nuts. Too much Tequila - with the worm in it no less."

The men all looked at each other to see who would go first.

"Ain't nutten around here – not with this economy all screwed up." Sam Campbell said finishing his drink. "I can think of a dozen ways to stop them from getting' in there."

"You in?" Cliff asked.

"Shit, why not."

"Good lookin' senoritas?" Carlos laughed. "Sheet nothin' else for a wet back like me, might as well."

"Must be," Cliff shrugged at the question. He thought about the young girl he briefly encountered. "Anybody else?"

Jenny set the glass down in front of Cliff. "Why not? This is it or be an old bag lady."

They looked up at Jenny. Cliff said: "Now yer nuts. That's no place for a lady."

"Hey, if I can handle a bar room full of drunk GI's on Friday night and end-of-month pay day, I can handle anything."

"If she's going, I'm going. What the hell, Carlos is right," Marc Howard spoke up, "Nothing anywhere. I can help Sam with the explosives."

Within ten minutes Cliff had his hand-picked hip-pocket army of six to take on an army of a couple dozen cartel mercenaries. Jenny got them one more drink on the house, they stood, toasted themselves and the job, drank their beers, Tequilas and whiskeys, and started for the door.

The bar tender looked up from the Austin newspaper he was reading to see Jenny walking out holding Frank's hand. "Hey, Jenny, where ya goin'? Ain't time to leave."

"It is. I'm going to Mexico. Bye."

The door shut behind them as if in a final word putting closure to their lives.

Chapter 3

Preparations for Battle

Four pickup trucks pulled up to the barrier at Atulian, two weeks almost to the day. Alejandra stood at the barrier astounded that Cliff did return with help. Adela stood back smiling. He returned as promised with the help.

Cliff waved from the truck, "I - I'm ba – ack!"

People gaped at the trucks piled with equipment and supplies for the town.

Alejandra waved her hand, "Virgin Mary in Heaven, he's back. Open the barrier let them in."

People cheered as the trucks rolled through the barrier stopping near the cantina. Everyone looked in the backs of the trucks seeing the rolls of wire, ammunition, explosives, four drums of gasoline, rope, weapons, and walkie-talkie's.

Cliff got out of his truck gesturing to the equipment they'd purchased in Mexico City and Guadalajara. "Told ya."

"Our prayers have been answered," a man behind them said. "Praise the Virgin in Heaven you have come back and with help too."

Cliff turned to see the man attired in a black gown. Then his eyes dropped to the priest's waist and the holstered pistol and an assault rifle depending from his right shoulder.

The other said, "Father Martinez and I have the pleasure of whom now?"

Alejandra introduced Cliff to the priest and those people gathered around them, and he in turn introduced his friends:

"…And, um Jenny – I don't know what her skills are?"

He wanted to say but refrained from the comment.

They went in to the cantina for a couple drinks. Alejandra said solemnly, "A couple of the enforcers were here two days ago."

The bar tender set a bottle of Jack and can of Coke on the bar. Cliff poured of the Coke and a generous amount of the whiskey.

Cliff downed his glass of whiskey. "I take it they didn't get very far."

"Not when over a hundred guns fired on them."

"Good. Then we need to get busy before they try to make another house call."

Cliff started to explain the layout of the town to the group. Alejandra assigned guides to show them around town and the existing barricade system. Cliff found himself paired with

Adela.

"Well – we meet again."

"What do you want to see?"

"I want to take a look at the overall area. Had some ideas on the way down here."

"What are you going to do?"

"Set this up Vietnam fire base style."

"How's that?"

He explained to her the use of trip wires, punji stakes, pits with punji stakes, explosives, and other nasty things that would make any approach a deadly affair.

"Another thing that has to be looked at is good firing positions. Set up a system where everybody has what is called a reaction point they automatically go to regardless.

The cartel may just be smart enough to attempt a distraction on one point and infiltrate on another. Basically if that is what they do, you're screwed."

As they walked out the west end of the village and another barricade, Cliff spotted a bull dozer.

"Just what I want."

"What are you going to do with that?"

"Use it to dig out a trench around the town. That will slow them down. How long has that been sitting there?"

Adela shrugged. "About a year."

They walked past the guards to the bull dozer. Cliff climbed up on the dozer, tried starting the machine. Adela watched anxiously as Cliff tried to start the dozer. After the third try the dozer started, a cough, a sputter, a roar as Cliff applied more of the accelerator, a black column of smoke spewed skyward. Cliff drove it to the other side of the barricade dropped the blade and began working the ground until he had made a ten foot wide trench, six feet deep, pushing the dirt and rocks in to a pile on the town side.

Adela ran after him laughing as he dug the trench. He stopped and motioned for Adela to climb on the dozer with him.

"Teach ya how the engineers in the Army and SEABEES in the Navy and Marines did it with machine guns."

"How?" she shouted back above the diesel engine.

"Kneel, point the rifle out board and keep a watch on the bushes." He adjusted his rifle on its assault sling and continued digging out the trench. By dark he was half way around the village.

Sam and Marc were nearly done with the booby-traps on the road leading in to Atulian, Carlos, Jimmy and Jenny showed the people helping how to string the trip line and set the punji stacks in the ground. Other villagers were digging the pits and setting them with stacks. Others kept up a vigilant watch as their friends worked; everyone had a job to do, even the priest worked at setting wires and stacks.

Two of the men refueled the dozer as Cliff and Frank checked it over.

"We'll have almost the whole town dug in tomorrow," Cliff said as he checked the hot plug. "I'm surprised it even started. Look at this…"

Adela sat on the driver's seat watching Cliff and Frank work. Cliff had pulled off his shirt to work on the engine. She had never seen a man like that before. She liked what she saw.

The woman Jenny sat on the running board watching them as they cleaned filters, the hot plug and greased it as best they could.

The others wandered over to see what Cliff and Frank were doing,

"What now Boss?" Jimmy asked looking over the dozer.

Cliff jumped down from the track with the secondary fuel filter in his hand. "Check the fighting positions. Make sure the guards are alert. As soon as I get done here I'll make another round of the fighting positions too."

They checked the walkie-talkies once last time. They half-heartedly saluted Cliff and walked off to begin their rounds.

Refueling was done, filters cleaned and other work done for the next day. Frank and Cliff cleaned up in the old garage that had been a livery stable at one time. Frank and Jenny went to one of several abandoned houses in the town while Cliff and Adela began to walk around the town checking the fighting positions.

"How long ago did those enforcers come here?" he asked as he realized the girl was walking closer to him.

"About a week ago."

"Enough time for the to get the idea something happened and get something together and come back by now."

They made the rounds together then walked back to the center of town picking a location that he was within running distance of any given point. He made radio checks with the guys then sat down wondering if he'd overlooked anything. Adela disappeared for a moment before coming back.

"Blankets," she said handing him a couple.

Cliff looked over at the girl as she spread the blankets over him. "And what about you?"

"This." She crawled under the blankets next to Cliff. The rifles rested on the outside.

He briefly wondered if the girl had developed a crush on him. If he made it out of this mess in one piece, he wondered if she'd go with him to Manzanillo; no shirt, no shoes, no problem. She probably would.

Chapter 3

The Battle is Joined

"I hate waiting," Jimmy said in a low tone as he looked past the make shift sand bag berm at the surrounding trees and road that was State 80 West. "This like waiting for the Al Quida to hit the place."

"Nothing we can do but wait," muttered Carlos.

They were beginning to wonder if the cartel would even waste their time now

showing up.

Cliff and Adela stood at the entrance staring up the road. "It's only a matter of time, guys."

Cliff wished he felt as confident as he sounded. There was an edge of worry to his words as he too wondered if the cartel would put in an appearance. Time was running for them. The town couldn't be any more prepared then they were.

Predawn dozens of headlights showed at a distance from the town. The lights were seen by those gathered around the barricade.

"They're b –b-b-back!" said Carlos with a laugh as he let the bolt go on his M16.

"No shit," said Frank tossing the cigarette aside he was smoking. "Let `em get with in killing range."

Alejandra looked at Cliff worried now. The Cartel was getting serious trying to take the town back.

The Cartel stopped just beyond the wreaked bus and pickups. Men in brown uniforms got out of the trucks, several walked past the wreaked vehicles looking them over.

"Didn't stand a chance," one said around a cigarette.

"Smell gas?" another asked.

"From the bus," another replied.

Frank quickly lay on his back with a compound bow wrapped around his feet, the string, a ten pounder drawn taunt. His feet were supported two boxs. Jenny quickly wrapped a cloth around the end an arrow, dipped the arrow in the can of gas, light the gas soaked rag, placed it in Frank's hand. "All yours, babe."

Frank nocked the arrow then loosed it almost straight up.

The group stopped as the flaming arrow shot almost straight up, reached its zenith and fell back to earth – straight into the gasoline soaked ground. There was a WOOSH!

followed by a BOOM!, an angry black and orange ball of flame erupt from the ground throwing flaming debris about.

Fourteen rifles punctuated the barrier and fired as one. The first twelve of the Cartel, stunned by the flames, were cut down. The others following were caught on the edge of the exploding gasoline.

Cliff broke away from the barrier. "Frank, Carlos, Jenny stay here – help support!"

"Where are you going?" Frank yelled as the screams of the Cartel members died.

"East side. I bet they'll try there too!"

Jimmy and Adela followed. Cartel members were slipping through the bordering brush as Cliff, followed by the others dropped into the rifle pit dug out near the church.

Two town people were in the area nervously watching for Cartel. They were relieved when Cliff and the others joined them.

"Yup. There they are." Cliff nodded toward the direction the Cartel were approaching. "They'll be in for a surprise in a few minutes. Adela, tell them don't fire until we do."

"Straight ahead. We can see them." They told Adela. "Don't shoot until Cliff does."

"We hold fire until you do."

"Okay."

Adela crawled out of the pit over to the others to pass the message then crawled back.

"Okay," she said.

Marc Howard and Sam Campbell skidded into the pits to join the fight.

"Thought ya might need some extra fire power here." Marc moistened his thumb to clean off the front sight of his M14 sniper's rife.

The Cartel looked around but was unable to see the group of town people. The area to them was wide open. They rushed forward dodging bushes and scrub trees then fell into pits, traps, tripping over trip wires, falling on the punji stacks. The others stopped cold not sure if they should continue or not.

The five rifles opened fire on the remaining group stopped by the sight of their comrades being killed so easily, falling in a hail of rifle fire.

"The west," Cliff told them getting out of the pit and running across the town square and past a house to the open area that had been stripped of trees. He jumped into a pit as Cartel members opened fire. Adela and Jimmy jumped in to the pit as four town's people opened fire on them. The Cartel withdrew as four of their members stumbled over the trip wire falling on the hidden punji stakes; three more attempting to return rifle fire were cut down.

The burning drum of gasoline and destroyed vehicles were like a wall forcing the

Cartel to go around. No one was sure how many showed up, but the town's people had done considerable damage to their ego and fighting ability.

Cliff waited until he was certain the survivors of the one sided battle had withdrawn.

Crawling out of the pit he ran back to the front barricades. "Alejandra!"

Alejandra turned from the scene in front of her. "Senor, they leave."

Cliff stopped in front of the old lady. "For now. But I doubt they'll give up that easy."

"Then what do we do?"

The other five joined Cliff and the other town's people at the front gate.

Cliff looked at the time. "Getting late. They'll try us one more time when it's dark and they think we can't see them. No bon fires tonight. We'll surprise them."

Everyone ate buffet style some taking the plate back to their fighting position. Cliff imposed a 50 – 50 rule on them to maintain a vigilance in case the Cartel attempted another attack. Cliff was still willing to bet they would attempt a night time raid.

"What'd think, Boss? We're right on the money that time." Jimmy shoveled another mouth full of meat and a sauce into his mouth. "And that's the way it's gotta be," Cliff reminded his small team of mercenaries. "No missed strokes."

Cliff and Alejandra toured the town and the barriers. He spread his men out to help add their fire power to the limited force. Cliff was not ready to admit it but they had been lucky so far that none of his men or the town's people had been hit. An excess of caution among the town's people had helped in one way, the other, his men had to carry the bulk of the load by taking chances they should not have done.

The town's people, Cliff and his group, spent a sleepless night as they expected the Cartel to make another try to breach the barricades. Near dawn several more showed up attempting to get around the southwest end of the defenses.

Their first indication of pending trouble was the first couple tripped over the wire but also set off the age old alarm of rocks in soda cans waking Cliff and Adela.

"They're here!" he yelled stirring others around him.

The people were galvanized in to action.

Shots rang out from the far end of the village. Frank accounted for two with his bow and arrows then rushed back to the front with Jenny in tow carrying the extra arrows and rifles. The two hugged the building ducking in to doorways and alleys.

Two Cartel men attempted to get around the booby traps stopping when Frank and Jenny surprised them. Frank shot one with an arrow, Jenny accounted for the others with her AR15.

"Well I wanted some action in my life and I guess I got it," said Jenny as she passed another arrow to Frank.

The others quickly backed off leaving several victims of the stakes and pits. Just as the situation was settling down, the Cartel made a last desperate try to breach the barricade. The Cartel sent a pickup loaded with explosives toward the front barrier. As the driver dove out of the pickup, it ran into a ditch that had been camouflaged by a tarp which was hard to see in the dark. The truck dropped through the tarp in to the ditch and stalled. Frank lay back and shot a flaming arrow straight up that came down hitting the explosives packed in the back. Those following hoping to breach the barricade stopped short diving for what limited cover was available as the arrow hit the boxes. Within seconds the load exploded, flaming shards of metal and glass rained down on the area.

The group and the town's people manning the front peered out after a moment to see the shattered burning hulk of the truck, bodies and body parts, blood and burned out hulks scattered about the area; the Cartel army was nowhere to be seen.

Cliff stood looking the area over. "I don't like this. They gave up too easily."

"What do you think will happen now, senior?" Alejandra looked the area over too, sensing Cliff's unease.

"I just have the hunch they'll bring the big guys in now. That guy has enough money I bet, he owns whoever runs the military end of things around here."

Alejandra and the others were nervous now. Cliff and Frank were enjoying

themselves this was like the old days in Vietnam and Iraq.

"Don't worry, Alejandra. We'll rig up a real surprise for them this time."

Chapter 4

Death or Glory

The positions were manned then at first light they rebuilt the booby traps, Frank and Sam redid the explosives setting them among the booby traps. Their real surprise was the set of traps if the Cartel or army attempted to use armored cars to breach the barricades.

Cliff used the bulldozer to re-dig the trenches deeper and wider. Adela rode outboard watching the wood lines and underbrush in case the Cartel tried anything now. By evening Cliff felt they were in a better position to defend the town. He stood up on the bull dozer looking the area over. In a couple short days they'd transformed the town in to a fortress and so far he reasoned they'd withstood what the Cartel threw at them.

Climbing off the dozer he walked back to the front of the town and the main barricades. The wreckage of the truck had been hauled out of the ditch and covered up again.

Cliff stepped out of the area with several of the people who were proud of their handy work. Cliff saw several burned out hulks had been left in place, more to serve as camouflage for the booby traps. Sam Campbell and Jimmy Page followed him. Adela liked what she saw. If the fire power didn't slow them down then the traps would.

"Look good, Cliff?" Sam asked smoking a cigarette looking the area over with an eye to detail.

"Yeah, what I've seen so far."

"It should," said Jimmy coyly with a snicker. "You ought to see what you're standing on."

Cliff and Adela jumped backward.

"What? What is it?"

Jimmy snickered again. "Used boards that are flexible and old car springs and with a lot of effort compressed the whole thing down in to trenches, locked it down and if they bring in armored cars like I think we used gasoline and flammable material – Al-Quida style, Boom!"

Cliff looked horrified that he had been standing on the trap. "Damn cleaver." 

They walked back behind the barricade to wait out the Cartel's next move. "Let's get some rest while we can."

The group didn't have long to wait. The sound of the armored cars and trail of dust

gave the towns people a chance to get themselves ready.

Cliff looked around to discover the Mexican Army finally had them surrounded. Looking to the west he spotted a HUMVEE pulled onto a rise of ground. An officer got out raising binoculars to his eyes. Cliff waved Carlos down. "I see him too. Wait. Let's see what these guys are going to do first."

Alejandra and Adela and the others stayed low but watching for a signal from the American. Alejandra watched Cliff, nearly holding her breath as the Mexican Army approached the barricade. The town's people would fight for their town to the last person if need be: the Mexican version of the Alamo.

Cliff watched the column split up into two sections. He estimated there had to be approximately battalion strength, or five hundred troops both armored and infantry. "Yeah they're going to try and outflank us. Use an old trick as old as General Gates during the Revolution at Saratoga. The problem is, I'd been through this a couple times already."

"Know your history, huh?" Frank said nocking an arrow watching the approach of the first armored car. "Whether he knows it or not that armored car commander is toast."

"Don't shoot until I tell ya."

The first armored car approached within a few feet of the trap. Alejandra remained back as Cliff light a cigar he was carrying. He strolled out smoking the cigar seating himself on a pile of bales that blocked the road. "To a point, yes."

Cliff was sitting on the bale as the driver of the armored car stopped. The commander of the armored car seemed to listen to somebody on the headset then said in a loud voice: "You must surrender. Orders of the Mexican government."

Cliff looked up the other taking the cigar out of his mouth looking at the glowing tip a moment then said in a droll tone, "No shit, Sherlock. Ya musta thought this would be yer lucky day, punk. Hate ta tell ya but me and the boys have ya all surrounded. Ya care ta surrender now or later? Mm?"

The other looked at him as Cliff looked back at the other with a smug look of determination. Cliff remained sitting on the bale smoking the cigar blowing the smoke toward the other.

"Well ya going to move it or lose it, Junior?"

The commander spoke into the head set again, the car lurched forward.

"NOW!" Cliff yelled and dove back behind the barricade as Carlos shot the commander, the vehicle moved on to the trap. Frank fired the first arrow from the side as the board sprang up at the driver, the gasoline soaked grass blew up in his face; the second sprang up as the armored car passed over the second board. Jenny had the second flaming arrow ready, Frank grabbed it from her, nocked the arrow shooting it at the grass, the rear hatch was jammed by the board trapping the twelve soldiers inside the burning vehicle.

The second vehicle went around the first, the driver gunning the APC's engine, the car lurched forward then dropped through the camouflaged tarp hitting explosives rigged to go off on impact. A second deafening explosion caused a third APC to backup, the commander screaming for him to move forward.

Carlos had the ones on the hill in the cross hairs of his sniper scope. Marc twisted the friction grip, two hundred pounds of explosive material blew the following two armored cars to pieces. The Army Colonel watched in horror as the three armored cars erupted in balls of flame. No sooner did the word "now" leave Cliff's mouth Carlos snapped off the shot, the bullet taking less than a split second to transit the six hundred yards to the Colonel's binoculars. The other fell back dead. Shifting slightly to his right as the driver opened his door getting out. Carlos fired again, the driver was bowled over backward as the bullet hit him square in the forehead.

"What are the Federalizes doing?" Cliff asked picking himself up from the ground.

"They're're trying to breach the left perimeter," Carlos called.

Adela stood beside Cliff unleashing a clip of ammo at the charging Federal troops as they bailed out of the armored personnel carriers.

Alejandra ran over to the berm as an armored car attempted to breach the ditch. The car hit the opposite side stalling. Frank and Carlos ran up behind her with a Soviet era RPG7 depending on his shoulder.

"Look out, Alejandra." Carlos stopped a few hundred meters from the berm, fired the rocket striking the armored car in the top then fired a second RPG rocket toward another APC but not before the commander of the vehicle was able to get off a burst of machine gun fire killing one town's man and seriously wounding another. The rocket impacted on the engine compartment setting it on fire.

"Scratch two APC"s," said Frank turning toward the other side of the town. "The church, they'll try there."

Carlos followed, Frank passing him another rocket which he loaded and primed on the run. Following were two more of the people. They caught several soldiers attempting to cut through the wire.

The soldiers looked up surprised when Carlos and Frank rounded the corner. Frank had an arrow nocked. "Sorry, amigo but that's not the front door." He shot the arrow into one as the others and Carlos took them under fire."

The battalion Commander dead, and several officers and six of the armored cars out of commission the survivors of the battalion backed off.

Calm descended over the town, what was left of it. Alejandra and several of her people were wounded, five dead. Cliff and Adela stood behind the barrier looking out over the scene. Cliff had not seen such destruction since Iraq. Burning hulks of the APC's, dead, dying and wounded lay about the ground, weapons littered the ground.

"Hey guys, lets retrieve what we can of the weapons and ammo. We'll need every weapon we can get our hands on – and ammo. There'll be at least one more push before they give up."

"You think so, Mr. Cliff?" Alejandra asked as Adela bandaged her grandmother's wounds.

"I know so." He turned to glance at Alejandra. "But I got one better on them."

"How is that, Mr. Cliff?" She asked flexing the fingers of her bandaged arm.

"Abandon the town."

Alejandra looked horrified. "Why?" she demanded. "This our town."

"Correct." Cliff kneeled in the dirt to draw a crud diagram marks in the dirt indicating what he was talking about. "Booby trap the town. Now town … them. Us out here in the weeds and bushes. Turn the trick on them. A fortified town or city can work two ways, protection by the walls, but what do you do if you're inside looking out and no way out. No room to maneuver. Let them have the town. Leaving, you then surround them – they're the ones trapped not you. See those hills to the west and south? Perfect for an ambush not more than two hundred meters away. The north side thanks to their stupidity in clearing out the trees is now wide open: a shooting gallery. They enter the killing zone, we drop the hammer on them and blow the town around their ears."

Cliff explained. "Move the people out of the town to concealed positions. Let the army take the town. Let them think we split for a safer area then hammer them. "

Alejandra got the idea. "This is good, Senior."

The rest of that day they spent booby trapping every building in the town. New traps had been set in the roads leading to the town. In the battalion's initial push to capture the town nearly a company of men and vehicles had been wiped out.

4

The Mexicali's Last Stand

Laying under a camouflage net near the top of low hill, or the military crest of the hill Cliff watched as some of the soldiers under cover of early twilight cautiously approached the town. Some decided after watching many of the first group attempt to take the town, they were more careful in their approach.

The town's people and Americans lay close to the ground waiting for Cliff's signal to move in behind the troops surrounding them.

"They're going for the bait," Cliff softly spoke in the hand set.

Two HUMVEEs followed by a Lincoln pulled in to the center of the town passing the

burned out vehicles, bodies of dead soldiers laying in the road, open pits that several soldiers and Cartel had fallen into. Stopping at two white stakes stuck in the road – markers for them Cliff grinned within.

"Cliff look. The Cartel boss."

"Even better. Give them a chance to look the place over and get complacent."

The town's people didn't have long to wait as the army and Cartel moved into the "abandoned" town. Two HUMVEEs led by four APC's and couple tanks entered the town.

He looked again. The tracked vehicles were not really tanks but armored infantry fighting vehicles similar to the M2 Bradley. Why they didn't use them before this, Cliff didn't know.

The unit's executive officer had assumed command of what was left of the battalion. Cliff presumed he had to have called for backup by now. For all intents and purposes Atulian had become a "killing field" for the Mexican Army.

The soldiers entered the two milling around. The XO began gesturing to the houses and few businesses. He wanted the men to begin checking the buildings for anyone who might still be hiding.

"Here it comes," said Frank as he moved the cross bow to shoot.

Everyone chose a target. The soldiers fanned out. The first group took up position by the front door of a house, another group walked in to the cantina. My heart and breathing raced, it like was suddenly in overdrive. I was enjoying myself too much. I gritted my tenth in anticipation. Alejandra and Adela glanced over at me waiting for the command.

Cliff did a mental count down then, "Now…!"

A hundred rifles and Frank's cross bow opened up from cover. As soon as the first arrow was loosed and rifles opened fire Cliff twisted the friction detonator. All hell broke loss. A series of buildings exploded, the line of vehicles lifted in the air as the charges in the road were set off. The officers and Cartel boss were blown through the air like rag dolls. A row of burning vehicles was all that was left of them. Doors that were kicked in set off charges inside the buildings to explode in their faces. Bodies were blown back across the street into the other buildings.

Those soldiers not caught by the explosions ducked for cover forgetting about the trip wires and punji stakes and IRD's they rigged up. There were cries of agony, screams, more explosions, what survivors there were retreated leaving the injured and dead for us to tend to.

Over half the town was now destroyed. It was the next thing to blowing up a building to kill a fly.

Cliff held everyone in check. "Wait. Give it another ten minutes."

Looking around for helicopters and reinforcements Cliff was mildly surprised there were no reinforcements or back up. Somebody probably decided a battalion could more then easily handle the job of dispatching a bunch of rabble rousers. Little did they suspect what was going to happen.

Two days later still no reprisals. After few more days of waiting and watching it was as if the town of Atulian was placed off-limits (taboo), no one came near the town.

The priest, still with the pistol riding his hip and the rifle slung over his back conducted the Last Rites and funeral service for both the villagers and dead soldiers. Marc Howard used the bull dozer to dig a mass grave for the dead soldiers, bodies had been scattered about the area from the battle. The villagers collected all the bodies they could find laying them in the single grave; the villagers, Alejandra and Adela chose to dig separate graves for each of the dead villagers. It was hot dirty work as they all pitched in digging the graves.

It was near evening when the Priest conducted the service. Candles were light and they sang an old Mexican song popular during the Revolution against Spain and later France, La Cucaracha.

Not all was finished. What was destroyed had to be rebuilt. Cliff and the others didn't have anything better to do with their time: they left the service, unemployed, had nothing better to do, they stayed to help the villagers rebuild their lives cementing a life time of friendship and in several cases, a couple got married while there.

Within a week of putting the village back together their happy little band of mercenaries drifted off in different directions or stayed to put down roots in Atulian. With Adela at my side in the pickup Cliff continued his interrupted trip to Manzanillo to fight a revolution.

# # #

Mexican town:

Atulian – Town, Mexico State Highway 80, Michoacán ,

Americans:

Cliff Richards – Leader –former Special Forces

Sam Campbell – former Marine explosives expert.

Jimmy Page – former Marine Machine gunner.

Jenny Lowe – former bar maid and Frank's girlfriend

Carlos Antonio – Rifleman

Frank Miller – former Ranger, sniper

Marc Howard – former Ranger

Towns People:

Alejandra Baso y' Arenas – Leader of town people

Adela Torres – Granddaughter – becomes Cliff's girl friend


End file.
